Javascript must be enabled to continue!
Between elderly parents and adult children: a new look at the intergenerational care provided by the ‘sandwich generation’
View through CrossRef
The ‘sandwich generation’ has been conceptualised as those mid-life adults who simultaneously raise dependent children and care for frail elderly parents. Such a combination of dependants is in fact very unusual, and the more common situation is when adults in late mid-life or early old age have one or more surviving parents and adult but still partly dependent children. It can be hypothesised that for parents in this pivotal position, the demands from adult children and from elderly parents compete, with the result that those who provide help to one are less likely to provide help to the other. An alternative hypothesis, however, is that family solidarity has an important influence but is not universal, so that some pivotal-generation parents engage in intergenerational exchange in both directions, and there is a positive association between helping parents and helping children. To investigate this question, the paper presents an analysis of data from two broadly comparable national surveys, in Great Britain and the United States, on the care provided by women aged 55–69 years to their descendent and ascendent relatives. The results show that around one-third of the women reported providing help to members of both generations, and that around one-fifth provided support to neither. They broadly support the solidarity hypothesis, but provide some evidence that having three or more children is associated with a reduced likelihood of providing help to a parent.
Title: Between elderly parents and adult children: a new look at the intergenerational care provided by the ‘sandwich generation’
Description:
The ‘sandwich generation’ has been conceptualised as those mid-life adults who simultaneously raise dependent children and care for frail elderly parents.
Such a combination of dependants is in fact very unusual, and the more common situation is when adults in late mid-life or early old age have one or more surviving parents and adult but still partly dependent children.
It can be hypothesised that for parents in this pivotal position, the demands from adult children and from elderly parents compete, with the result that those who provide help to one are less likely to provide help to the other.
An alternative hypothesis, however, is that family solidarity has an important influence but is not universal, so that some pivotal-generation parents engage in intergenerational exchange in both directions, and there is a positive association between helping parents and helping children.
To investigate this question, the paper presents an analysis of data from two broadly comparable national surveys, in Great Britain and the United States, on the care provided by women aged 55–69 years to their descendent and ascendent relatives.
The results show that around one-third of the women reported providing help to members of both generations, and that around one-fifth provided support to neither.
They broadly support the solidarity hypothesis, but provide some evidence that having three or more children is associated with a reduced likelihood of providing help to a parent.
Related Results
Malaysian Sandwich Generation Issues and Challenges in Elderly Parents Care
Malaysian Sandwich Generation Issues and Challenges in Elderly Parents Care
Ageing is a growing concern all around the world. It is the biggest challenge for developing and developed countries, including Malaysia. Malaysia is a country, where ageing care c...
Living arrangements and intergenerational monetary transfers of older Chinese
Living arrangements and intergenerational monetary transfers of older Chinese
ABSTRACTPrevious studies show a decline in parent–child co-residence among the elderly. This study examined the effect of living away from adult children on upward intergenerationa...
Effect of older adults in the family on the sandwich generation's pursuit of entrepreneurship: evidence from China
Effect of older adults in the family on the sandwich generation's pursuit of entrepreneurship: evidence from China
AbstractHousehold entrepreneurship is a basic unit of entrepreneurial activity, and a crucial aspect of connecting personal and social wellbeing. This study examines the relationsh...
Parents' participation in school life and their assessment of the quality of the educational process
Parents' participation in school life and their assessment of the quality of the educational process
Introduction. The importance of parents' participation in school life is theoretically indisputable, but the existing empirical data on the relationship between parental involvemen...
The inter-relationship between formal and informal care: a study in France and Israel
The inter-relationship between formal and informal care: a study in France and Israel
ABSTRACTThis study examined whether formal care services delivered to frail older people's homes in France and Israel substitute for or complement informal support. The two countri...
Caring for t[]e inheritance: Elderly care, inheritance rights, and subjective tension in a village from Northern Dobruja
Caring for t[]e inheritance: Elderly care, inheritance rights, and subjective tension in a village from Northern Dobruja
In this paper I show how inheritance is exchanged for old age care in a village from Northern Dobruja, Romania. The elderly have to insure their old age care while managing relatio...
“In a Proper Home”
“In a Proper Home”
In all times and in all societies, there have been children who for various reasons have not been able to grow up with their biological parents. The solutions to the problems have ...
They ‘don't cure old age’: older Ugandans’ delays to health-care access
They ‘don't cure old age’: older Ugandans’ delays to health-care access
ABSTRACTUganda's population is ageing, which comes with increased and varied burdens of disease and health-care needs. At the same time, gerontological care in Uganda remains negle...